Stockfish for everyone, in the Western Ligurian version! And DOP Riviera Ligure Extra-Virgin Olive Oil is an essential accompaniment to it, forming a winning combination. The opportunity is one to make your mouth water and the outcome of a positive partnership in the area of Liguria, with the Imperia Province and Ligurian Alps Stockfish Academy being one of the prime components. This is an organization with restaurants and associations of excellence among its founder-members: heading these is the Comitato San Giovanni e Tradizioni Onegliesi (Committee of Saint John and Oneglia Traditions), which is responsible for one of the celebrations of Imperia-style stockfish on the occasion of the feast-day of Saint John the Baptist in Oneglia in June. The Academy’s activities are worthy of merit, relying on its ability to research and tackle the wealth of methods for cooking stockfish and salt cod. And the combination with DOP Riviera Ligure Extra-Virgin Olive Oil is inevitable. The tradition of olive oil – a fixed one in Liguria – stands alongside the skill in preparing authentic dishes from the local territory, which were once upon a time linked to the religious “lean days” (when meat is not eaten) and were dishes that everyone could afford. The official debut of this combination is to take place in Sant’Omero, Teramo province, at the Festival of Salt Cod and Stockfish between 10th and 12th April 2015, organized in collaboration with the local Slowfood condotta. The Imperia representatives intend to propose some delicious versions of stockfish. These include the Imperia-style stockfish, which now has De.Co. (municipal designation of origin) status, and is the result of the judicious reworking of a traditional recipe belonging to historic city fishmongers. And then there’s the delicacy of brandacujun, a creamed fish dish whose origin goes back to the age-old relationship between Liguria and Provence. The gastronomic challenge is with Abruzzo, Marche and Puglia – and they are rivals in olive oil quality as well. We’re certain that DOP Riviera Ligure Extra-Virgin Olive Oil will perform excellently: with its delicate, sweet flavour it will enhance the taste of an apparently rough, Nordic fish, and with the same winning features it will be appreciated when compared with oils from the Adriatic area. So we are ready for the relaunch: the two local specialities aim to perpetuate their union by meeting the public and with moments of sharing olive oil-and-food combinations in the home of the DOP status – “A Ciassa” – the place showcasing excellent Ligurian products that opened recently at Piazza Dante 18 in Imperia Oneglia.
